eogers



J. B. ROGERS.

3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

ANNUNCIATORl l(No Model.)

No. 564',s14. 'lnitenwdJuly21,1896i imm Y 3 sheens-shet 2. J. B. ROGERS.

ANNUNGIATQR. No. 564,314. Patented July 21, 1896 3 Shets-Sheet 3.

J. B. ROGERS. ANNUNCIA'JTOR.`

(No Model.)

Patented July 2l, 1896.

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Y' UNITED .STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHl-\T B. ROGERS, OF ZILLAH, VASI'IINGTON, ASSIGNOR TO CHARLESC. M.LOEFFLER, TRUSTEE, OF VASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

ANNUNCIATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters IPatent No. 564,314, dated July21, 1896.

Application tiled October 31, 1894. Serial No. 527,557. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom t may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN B. ROGERS, a citizen of the United States,residing at Zillah, in the county of vYakima and State of Washington,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Annunciators, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention relates to electric annunciators, and has for its object toprovide a simple, cheap, and effective annunciator; and my inventionconsists in an annunciator having the features of construction,arrangement, and mode of operation substantially as hereinafter set forth. Y

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a front view of therecording device. Fig. 2 is a rear view of the same. Fig. 3 is a sideview, one of the side pieces being removed. Fig. 4E is a front View ofthe transmitter. Fig. 5 is a rear view thereof. Fig. G is a verticalsection, and Fig. 7 is a diagram indicating the arrangement of thecircuits.

As above indicated, my present invention relates to annunciators adaptedfor many and various purposes, but it is designed more particularly forhotel or similar uses, wherein there is a single recording instrument,and there are a number'of transmitting instruments located in differentparts of the building, all connected electrically with the centralrecording apparatus, and all arranged so that not only can the number ofthe room or other place from which the call is sent be designated, butthe particular one of a large number of calls can also be designated,and this by a construction and arrangement of mechanism which isexceedingly simple, not liable to get out of order, as Well as cheap andpracticable.

Vithout recit-ing the numerous attempts heretofore made to produce sucha device, I will now proceed to describe the embodiment of my` presentinvention as illustrated in the `accompanying drawings, it beingunderstood that while I have shown the preferred construction andarrangement the details may be varied somewhat by those skilled in theart without departing from the principles thereof.

The recording apparatus, which is shown more particularly in Figs. l, 2,and 3, comprises a case A, whichmay be of any suitable material orshape, and which has arranged on it in a convenient position, shown asin the upper portion of the front, a dial A', divided into a number ofsections, in which are marked the various wants or calls most likely tobe useful in any particular case. Operating in connection with this dialis a pointer B, which may be of any desired shape or size, being shownas a simple pointer mounted on the end of an axle b, and arranged to berotated in the manner hereinafter described in connection with the dialor index. Also mounted` on the face of the recorder is a plate A2,containing a number of switches or push-buttons d, having numbers orother designating-marks corresponding With the rooms or other placeswith which the recorder is connected. The operating mechanism for thepointer and the circuit connections controlled by the pushbuttons orswitches are preferably arranged in the case of the recorder, Where theywill be protected from the elements and from tampering by unauthorizedpersons, and I will now proceed to describe the same.

One of the main objects of my present invention is to provide anexceedingly simple mechanism, both in the recorder and the transmitter,in order to avoid expense as Well F as to avoid liability of derangementof the parts, and it will be seen hereinafter how well these objectshave been attained. Connected to the shaft b of the pointer is aratchetwheel C, and this ratchet-wheel is controlled by a ratchet orescapement C', shown as pivotally mounted as at c, with its free endsengaging the ratchet-wheel in the well-known way. This ratchet orescapement is controlled by an electromagnetv D, the' armature d ofwhich is formed on or connected with one arm of the escapement.Connected with the circuit of this electromagnet is a circuit-breaker E,shown in the form of a spring connecting two contacts, the springprovided with an offset or projection e, against which the ratchetwheelimpinges, and the circuit-breaker is arranged so that as theratchet-Wheel rotates the circuit will be alternately made and broken inthe manner hereinafter more particularly set forth. Y

Some means are provided for operating the Ioo ratchet-wheel under thecontrol of the escapement, and while a spring may be used, or any otherwell-known mechanism, I preferably make use of a vertically-slidingrackbar F, engaging a pinion f on the shaft b of the ratchetwheel. Thisrack slides in a frame F', mounted over the ratchet-wheel, and by itsown weight causes the ratchetwheel to rotate to opera-te thecircuit-breaker, and as its weight is uniform at all times theratchet-wheel will be impelled to rotate at a uniform rate of speed,controlled only by the escapement.

Some sort of means are provided for elevating the rack-bar, and I haveshown a bar F2, mounted on a rod F3, having a knob F'1 extending belowthe case, by means of which the bar may be raised to raise the rack-baras desired, and I preferably provide a retarding device, as a dash-potF5, which will prevent the too sudden movement of the rod, which wouldderange the working of the apparatus.

The push-buttons or switches controlling the circuits may be of anydesired construction, but are shown in the present instance ascomprising the buttons a., which are :mounted on stems a, passingthrough the front face of the case, and which are arranged to make andbreak the circuit in accordance with their position, whether in or out.Thus they carry two circuit-closers co2 CL3, which are mounted on thestems and control circuits, the terminals of which are supported in abracket or plate A3. Some means should be provided to press thepush-buttons out when desired, and I have shown hangers AA1 mounted inthe case and connected to a cross-piece or plate A5 opposite the rearportions of all the push-buttons, and this is arranged to be operated asby the lever-arm A, mounted on a shaft A7, and having cams a4 at itsends for forcing the plate A5 forward when desired. This lever A isarranged in the present instance to be operated by the bar F2simultaneously with the raising of the rack-bar, so that by one movementall the parts of the recorder are restored to their normal conditionswhen desired, the pointer, of course, being moved to its normalposition, the pushbuttons being restored to their normal positions, thatis, out, and the rack-bar being elevated or set up so as to be ready tooperate the pointer whenever the magnet is operated to control theescapement and permit the recorder hand or pointer to be rotated.

The transmitter to be used in the dierent rooms or localities and to beconnected with the recording device at the main or central office islikewise exceedingly simple in construction and is very similar in thearrangement of its parts to the recorder, and it consists in the presentinstance of a case Gr, which is shown as cylindrical and made of metalor otherwise, having on its face a dial G', divided into spacescorresponding to the spaces on the dial of the recorder andcorrespondingly marked with the wants or calls. There is also a hand orpointer I-I, mounted on a shaft h, projecting through the face of thecase, and which is in this instance provided with a milled nut or headI-I, by means of which the hand or pointer H maybe rotated by theoperator until it corresponds with the desired call on the dial.

Mounted on the shaft 7L is a ratchet-wheel I, which preferably has aseries of ratchets corresponding in number with the ratchets of theratchet-wheel C of the recorder, and this ratchet-wheel is likewisecontrolled by an escapement I', which in turn is controlled by anelectromagnet J, the armaturej of which is connected to or forms part ofthe escapement I. Arranged in the circuit of the electromagnet is acircuit-breaker K, shown in the form of a pivoted arm having aprojection 7c, extending into the path of the projection or pin lL' onthe ratchet-wheel, and the free end of the circuit-breaker normallyrests on the insulated portion Z of the contact-piece L, and the circuitis therefore normally broken. Means are provided for closing the circuitby causing the circuit-breaker to rest upon the portion Z of the contactL, and while these means may vary I have shown a push-button M extendingto the side of the case and normally under the pressure of a spring ntand so arranged that when it is pressed inward the circuit-breaker willbe moved to close the circuit; but as soon as the pressure of theoperator is released the spring will restore it to its normal position,so as not to interfere with the operation of the circuit-breaker when itis moved to break the circuit by the pin or projection li on theratchet-wheel impinging upon the projection k on the circuit-breaker.

It will be understood that there will be a number of transmitters, inaccordance with the rooms or localities connected with the recorder, andall of these will be constructed alike and will be connected with therecorder by suitable circuits, and it is desirable that there should beanannunciator of some construction to indicate the particular room fromwhich the call is received, and I iind the ordinary hotel annunciator N,as usually employed, is convenient for this purpose, the details ofconstruction of which will vary, of course, and which construction andmode of operation are well understood by those skilled in the art, therebeing the ordinary drops or indicator devices, which, on calling, closethe circuit to the recorder and indicate the particular circuit closed.A bell O may also be arranged, `as is common, which will be operated byamagnet O, which controls the local circuit of the bell, and which magnetis in one branch of the circuit of the annunciatordrops, so that whenany call is made the bell at the central office will ring until the callis attended t-o by the proper party. There is no necessity of having abell in connection with the transmitter, as the restoration of thepointer of the transmitter to its normal position will indicate to theperson using the IOO ion'

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transmitter that the call has been received and Will have attention.

In Fig. 7 I have indicated the preferred arrangement of circuits,wherein Ihave used a single battery P or battery-cells for all thecircuits, although, of course, it will be understood that independentbatteries or groups of cells may be used, and Without detailing thesecircuits I Will now describe the mode of operation of the device, sothat it will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

Assuming the hand or pointer I-I to be in the normal position, asindicated, and the operator desires to call for any particular article,say, for instance, ice-Water, he will turn the pointer to the right, bythe aid of the thumb-nut, until the pointer indicates the articledesired on the dial of the transmitter. This being done, he Will pressthe push-button M, which Will close the electric circuit at the contactL, and it may be traced as follows, as indicated in Fig. 7 starting fromthe ground, through the conduct-or l, leading to the circuit-breaker K,thence to the contact L, through the magnet J, by the conductor 2, tothe push-button a, having a number corresponding With the number of theroom, assumed in this case to be l thence, by the conductor 3, to themagnet of the particular drop of the annunciator N, corresponding to theroom, through the magnet of the drop, and, if the bell is used, throughthe magnet O', by the conductor 4, to the battery, and, by the conductor5, to ground again, thus completing the circuit. This, as is Wellunderstood, Will cause the annunciator-drop or indicator to be operatedto designate the particular room from which the call has been made, andthe magnet O Will close the local circuit 6, '7, and S through the bellO, and the bell Will continue to ring as long as this circuit remainsclosed. The operator at the central office, hearing the bell andnoticing the number on the annunciator, Will press the push-button a,corresponding to the number on the indicator, breaking this circuit,thereby, of course, causing the local circuit of the bell to be brokenand the bell to stop ringing. In breaking this circuit by pushing in thepush-button he also closes another circuit, Which, as a matter of fact,may include the same conductors l and 2 of the former circuit, butinstead of connecting with the conductor 3 it is connected With theconductor 9, including the coils of the magnet D, the circuitbreaker E,and thence, by the conductor 10, to the battery P, and to ground by theconductor 5. This Will energize both the magnets of the recorder and thetransmitter in unison, and the Weighted rack-bar F or equivalent, actingon the ratchet-Wheel C, which is released by the escapement C', causesthe ratchet-Wheel to turn one step,'when the circuit-breaker E is openedby one of the teeth of the ratchet-Wheel breaking this circuit anddenergizing the magnets,and the escapement C falling releases theratchet-Wheel another portion of a tooth, so that the projection e onthe circuit-breaker E will come opposite another tooth on theratchet-Wheel and allow the circuit-breaker E to close, which Willimmediately energize the magnet again, and the operations Will berepeated.'

It Will thus be seen that both the magnets D and J, at the recorder andtransmitter, are energized in unison and their circuits are broken inunison, so that the escapements operated by the respective magnets areoperated in unison, and the indicator-hand at the recorder will be movedin unison With the indicator-hand at the transmitter, step by step, andthis Will continue until the ratchet-Wheel I at the transmitter hasrotated to bring its pin i in contact with the projection lo and movethe circuit-breaker arm K from the contact Z to the contact Z, breakingthe circuit permanently. This is accomplished only when theindicator-hand H is at its normal position, it being restored by theoperation of the escapement on the ratchet-wheel. It Will be understoodthat the indicator-hand at the recorder has moved as many spaces to theright as the indicator-hand at the transmitter retreated or movedbackward to its normal position, and the indicator at the recorder Willtherefore show a call corresponding to that of the indicator at thetransmitter When it was set by the operator. Thus the central oiiiceWill have a true indication of the particular call of the operator atthe transmitter, and this operator Will know that his call has beencorrectly received. When this is completed, the operator at the centraloffice raises the knob F4, Which raises the rack-bar F, restoring theindicator-hand to its normal position, and the push-button is forcedoutward to its normal position by the lever A6 and its cams moving theplate A5, and the parts are restored to their normal condition. Theannunciator-drop is also restored by the usual mechanism common tohotel-annunciators, and this may be connected to be operated by the knobF4, so that at one operation all the parts are restored to their normalcondition, ready to receive another call.

It will thus be seen that by an exceedingly simple construction, both ofthe transmitter and the recorder, a large number of signals from thetransmitter, as Well as a large number of transmitters, may be used inconnection With a single recorder and that the transmitter and recorderWill operate in unison and Will quickly designate the particular call ofany particular transmitter and notify the operator of the transmitterthat his call has been received. Of course it Will be understood thatthe annunciator may be combined With the recorder, but I have chosen toshow them separate, as nearly all hotels are provided With annunciatorsconnected with the various rooms, and it will be seen that my recordingdevice and transmitting device can be readily connected With thecircuits of the IOO IIO

ordinary annuneiator in buildings where they have already beenestablished without serious inconvenience or expense.

It will further be seen that by constructing the transmitter and therecorder substantially as indicated, so that each has a ratchetwheel, anescapement and a magnet controlling the escapement, the magnets of thetransmitter and recorder being in the same line, the two devices willoperate in unison, and any movement of the ratchet-wheel of thetransmittei1 will be accompanied by a similar movement of theratchet-wheel of the recorder, and neithei1 will move beyond thedistance required to indicate the call desired. This is an importantadvantage over transmitters wherein the ratchet-wheel moves a certaindefinite distance for each call, although it may indicate the variouscalls on the recorder. In my device it' the indicator of the transmittermoves only three spaces to indicate the desired call, the ratchet-wheelmoves only the same distance, and a corresponding number of variationsor interruptions of the electric circuit takes place, and theratchet-wheel of the recorder moves likewise only the same number ofsteps. Furthermore, it will be observed that the makes and breaks orvariations of the circuit controlling both the transmitter and recorderare operated at the recorder end of the line, and in the arrangementshown the circuit is broken at each step of the hand of the recordingdevice, and this make and break of the circuit at the recording deviceoperates the indicators at the transmitter and recorder in unisonthrough the magnets included in the same line. It will further be seenthat with this arrangement the transmitter need have but one point forbreaking the circuit, and that is when the indicator is at its normalposition. lVith this arrangement I am enabled to make a most simpledevice, comprising very few parts, which are easily constructed, notliable to get out of order, and still certain and definite in theiroperation, and this is a very important feature of my invention.

That I claim isl. The combination in an annunciator, of a recordingdevice comprising a dial,a pointer, and a ratchet wheel connected withthe pointer, an esca-pement controlling the ratchet-wheel, a magnetoperating the escapement, a circuit-breaker controlling the magnet,push-buttons controlling the circuit of the magnet, a rack-bar foroperating the ratchet-wheel, and means for raising the rackbar, andmeans for restoring the push-buttons to position, substantially asdescribed.

2. The combination in an annunciator, ofv

the dial, a ratchet-wheel and pointer being in connection with. eachother, an escapement controlling the ratchet-wheel, a magnet operatingthe escapement, a circuit-breaker controlling the magnet, push-buttonscontrolling the circuit of the magnet, a rack-bar oper: yting theratchet-wheel, and means whereby the rack-bar is set and thepush-buttons restored to position simultaneously, substantially asdescribed.

3. The combination in an annunciator of a recording device having anindicator, a single ratchet-wheel connected with said indicator, acircuit-breaker arranged to be operated at each complete step of theratchet-wheel, a transmitter having an indicator, and a circuit-breakerarranged to be operated when the indicator is in its normal position, acircuit connecting the recorder and indicator, magnets controlling theindicators of the reeerder and transmitter and causing them to operatein unison, push-buttons controlling the magnet of the recording device,a rackbar, a knob for raising the rack-bar, and a lever having camscontrolling a plate for restoring the push-buttons to position,substantially as described.

4t. In an annunciator the combination el a recording device comprising asingle ratchetwheel and a pointer connected therewith and moving over adial, an escapement controlling the movements of said wheel, a magnetcontrolling the escapemen t, and a circuitbreaker controlled by saidwheel, and a transmitting device comprising also a single ratchet-wheeland pointer connected therewith and moving over a dial, an escapenientfor said wheel, and a circuit-breaker therefor controlled by aspring-actuated push-rod, a magnet controlling said escapement, and anelectric circuit controlling both of the escapements and wheels, wherebythe pointers at the transmitting and recording devices are operated inunison ,substantially as described.

5. In an annunciator, the combination with the dial, of the pointer, aratchet-wheel con.-

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nected to the pointer, an escapement con- JOHN I-. ROUE lVitnesses:

Roer. STERLING, C. C. XVARD IIO

